Insurance Council of B.C. fines agency, marketing manager for improper access to ICBC rate information

The Insurance Council of B.C. has published its intention to fine Family Insurance Solutions Inc. $20,000 and its marketing manager, Graham Nelson Doerr, $10,000 for improperly obtaining vehicle rating information from the province’s public insurer, the Insurance Corporation of B.C. (ICBC)
The order took effect on July 20, 2010.
The agency and Doerr had the right to appeal the decision up until July 19. As of press time, it is unknown if the agency and Doerr appealed the decision.
According to the intended decision, posted on the council’s Web site, Doerr met with the agency’s president in the summer of 2007 to discuss why the agency had grown faster than anticipated, particularly in relation to auto insurance products.
Based on feedback from other insurance agents, Doerr concluded the agency, which competes with ICBC on optional auto insurance, was likely underrating vehicles relative to the ICBC.
It was decided the company would obtain the rate information of their competitor, the ICBC. Theoretically, using such information, the company could charge higher premiums for their optional product, and thus slow down the agency’s growth.
Doerr contacted a broker who represented ICBC to see if the broker would be able to help obtain the rate information. The broker said if Doerr sent someone down to his office, he would help.
Doerr sent the agency’s rate analyst.
It is unclear what arrangement the rate analyst had with the broker to obtain information on ICBC’s rates, but the rate analyst was able to obtain rate information related to 287 quotes in September 2007. On Oct. 10, 2007, another 86 rate quotes were obtained from the broker’s IP address.
By way of comparison, ICBC records indicate the agency completed a total of only 70 rate quotes for the entire month of August 2007.
According to regulations, ICBC Autoplan Extranet usage is restricted, allowing only licensed insurance agents who represent ICBC to obtain information from the database. The information obtained may only be used for the purpose of facilitating ICBC transactions.
Upon learning of what happened, the president of Family Insurance Solutions Inc. conducted an internal investigation, and immediately went to the ICBC to explain what had happened. No specific discipline was imposed on the rate analyst, the council noted, although the agency did change its corporate policy so that it might fire individuals who gained unauthorized access to data in the future.